There are various surgical techniques that use mesh or other devices to support portions of a patient's body such as bladder or uterus, for example those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,911,003 and 6,884,212, which are hereby incorporated by reference. While it is possible to make a relatively large incision to provide the surgeon with direct access to the area in which the mesh support structure is being placed, this technique is undesirable because it not only increases the potential of complications but also increases the time for the patient to recover from the surgery.
As such, it is desirable to make relatively small incisions in the patient and then feed the mesh support structure to desired locations using needles or other devices. There are several challenges associated with using needles to position the mesh support structure. The most significant challenge relates to attaching the mesh support structure to the needle so that the mesh support structure can be readily moved inside of the patient.
One technique used by the assignee of the present application to attach insertion needles to mesh support structures is through a snapping connection. Such a connection requires a relatively large force (at least 10 pounds) to disconnect the insertion needle from the mesh support structure to ensure that the mesh support structure does not inadvertently detach from the insertion needle during the insertion of the mesh support structure.